For My Lover
by Hatlebee
Summary: Howl has moved on and has given his mobile castle to his current apprentice, Marcel L'Amour. After being alone for so long, will the appearance of his younger sister, Madison, and a high school graduate help him or drive him further into madness?
1. Freedom

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any characters from Howl's Moving Castle. Kthnxbye. :]

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**FREEDOM**

Easily finishing her last exam, Evelyn Asher sat trembling at her desk. Summer anticipation was killing her. She ran her long fingers through her long chestnut colored hair. Practically everything on Evelyn was long: long hair, long fingers, long legs, long neck. She was just an overall lengthy girl. Not that it pleased her, or anything.

Evelyn looked over at her beautiful best friend, Lita Pierce, who was spaced out. Her perfectly manicured fingers were laced around the golden heart pendant. She never took that thing off! Something about "it holds the heart of my true love" type of deal. Evelyn cleared her throat loudly so Lita would hear. When she finally looked, Lita twitched her head toward the clock, daring Evelyn to look at it, her short black bob flowing with the quick movement. Evelyn's stone grey eyes met the silver clock that was happily ticking away. Five minutes. Five extremely long minutes to complete freedom.

Evelyn and Lita were edging closer and closer to the end of their high school careers; edging closer and closer to their lives as free women. That is, until college came along. Just the thought of college brought chills to Evelyn's spine, followed by nervousness… then finally nausea. If she didn't puke first, she could sit here and think about it all day.

The agony, the torture of waiting, it was slowly killing her. Evelyn knew as soon as she heard that piercing ring it would all go away, but that didn't make waiting any better.

Finally, the bell rang. That shrilling ring that brought joy at the end of the day filled their ears. Oh how they were going to miss that bell… not.

Evelyn was the first out the door, so quick to her feet that the hallway was still empty and the classes buzzed with eager students. She breathed in that stale air that has filled her lungs the past four years. It felt good to be finally leaving, but deep… deep down she was going to miss this place. Kind of, maybe.

Lita's boney shoulder collided with Evelyn's back as she walked right though her stand-still friend, practically knocking her over, "Come on Ev, what are you doing? We need to get the hell out of here before the lunch ladies find us and insist on reminiscing."

Lita was one of those "I'm better than you and there's nothing you can do about it" girls. But she does have an excuse… or two. For one, she's absolutely gorgeous. She has a fox-like face and a figure to die for. She has curves in all the right places, unlike Evelyn… who is nothing but a washboard. Her dark brown eyes are big and doe-like, but don't be fooled. Lita is nothing but innocent. She is… how do you say… very experienced. She's had an unhealthy amount boyfriends; she needs both her hands, feet and eyelashes to count them. And if she were to count hook-ups Evelyn would need to help.

Evelyn, in contrast, would only need one hand to count her past boyfriends. Not that they really counted, after a week or two they would just give into Lita's spell. But, for some odd reason, Evelyn doesn't blame her. She says they were big fat jerks anyways.

Now, don't be deceived by her lack of experience, Evelyn is a beautiful girl. She was just picky about who she wants to spend the rest of her life with. Yes, you guessed it; Evelyn Asher is a complete sucker for romance. She doesn't just want a random hook up, or a guy to fill her boyfriend status. She wants true love and nothing less. This obsession might have been caused by the massive amounts of romance novels she reads. To be honest, Evelyn just reads a lot. She always has at least two books with her. She is a genuine bookworm.

Evelyn gave a quick nod to her best friend and caught up to her. Their strides were long and their steps were quick. They were nearly running. But they needed to get out, they needed to be free. And with a struggling push to the heavy front door, they were.

They stopped dead before the stairway descent. Lita breathed in heavily, closing her eyes like she was thoroughly enjoying it, "Smell that, Ev?"

Evelyn sniffed the air lightly, looking confused as she did, "Smell what?"

With that comment, Lita rolled her eyes and began descending down the stairs, "The smell of sweet freedom, dumbass." Her words were quick and sharp, like a blade, cutting Evelyn's words in half.

Evelyn cleared her throat, "Oh." She said quietly, more to herself than anyone. She followed Lita down the steps.

Again, the scene before them was vacant. The large fountain at the bottom of the steps bubbled away. "You're still looking for a job, right? Tell me again, why do you even need a job?" Lita asked Evelyn.

Evelyn sighed with disappointment in herself, "Unfortunately, yes. Some people actually need to work to get the things they want. Unlike you who gets everything handed to her on a golden tray."

Lita only shrugged and smiled at this comment as if to say, "Yes, I'm a spoiled bitch. Now get over it." Now it was Evelyn's turn to roll her eyes.

Evelyn and Lita departed ways when they reached the student parking. As Lita got into her shiny new car she asked if Evelyn wanted a ride, but Evelyn refused. She'd rather walk then hear Lita boast about her perfect life one more time. Plus, maybe if she took the long way and walked through town she could find a decent job.

Evelyn waved goodbye to Lita as she drove past, beeping the horn obnoxiously. Evelyn laughed as she swerved into the other lane and quickly back into the other. She was probably looking behind her, still waving, and didn't notice where she was driving. Even though she seems perfect, Lita can still make mistakes. This pleased Evelyn to some extent. Knowing her best friend was human was comforting.

As she took the longest possible way home, Evelyn decided to look around for a job. She looked at this small diner, then the local grocery store, and even a rundown spa, but she couldn't find anything. The places that she wanted to work at (like the huge library at the center of town) weren't hiring and the places that were hiring were so very strange. Seeing how she was completely off the track to get home and couldn't find a decent job for her life, Evelyn decided to head for home.

But before she could even turn around, a young girl with wildly curly hair caught her eye. She was kneeling down, back against a small ice cream shop's front wall, hands covering her face. Evelyn could tell she was crying. With two large strides, Evelyn stepped towards the child, "Hey, are you okay?" She asked the little girl with a soft, sweet voice. The little girl looked up at her, tensing up as Evelyn got closer. Her intensely blue eyes were rimmed with a red ring. Evelyn reached out a hand, "No, no, I won't hurt you. I promise. I want to help. What's wrong?"

The girl just looked at her hand, she seemed hesitant, but spoke, "I-I'm trying to find my br-brother's house." Her voice was shy, sweet and a bit hoarse, as if she had done a lot of yelling in the past hour.

Evelyn took her hand away, not trying to scare the child. She then smiled at her, "If you tell me what his house looks like, I can help you. I know this town pretty well." The girl's hair bobbed in the wind. It reminded Evelyn of cotton candy. "What's your name?"

The girl shook her head violently, "My name is Madison, but you won't be able to find his house." Her words were quick, hard to decipher. But her sapphire eyes burned into Evelyn's, daring her to tell her otherwise.

Evelyn was put back by this. What was this little girl trying to tell her? Her eyes gazed into hers with such passion. Evelyn held out her hand again, "Well, it looks like you can't find it either. You know, I've heard that two heads are better than one. Want some help?"

"Actually you're right," Madison replied. She looked at Evelyn's hand again, then back up at her face. With this, Evelyn felt a small, warm hand inside of hers.

They walked like this for awhile, hand in hand, getting further and further away from the center of town. Suddenly, Madison's sweet voice shattered the silence that has fell over them, "Hey," her eyes were set on Evelyn, "you never told me your name!"

Evelyn's grey eyes widened to their extent, "Why, yes! You're absolutely right." She turned her head and looked Madison in the eyes, "My name is Evelyn, but you can call me Ev if you want." Her smile was wide and welcoming.

"Evelyn?" Madison head cocked to one side as she persisted forward, "That's a strange name." With this, Evelyn just shrugged. Madison continued talking, "My brother calls me Madi. I'm not sure if I like it that much."

Evelyn emitted a small giggle, "Madi, huh? I think that's adorable. But if you don't like it, I don't need to call you it." Evelyn's legs burned with lactic acid. She began to wonder how far she was from her house.

Madison shrugged, "It doesn't matter. I'm used to it. You can call me that if you want." She was now skipping, making Evelyn's arm jerk up and down.

Evelyn nodded, "Alright, Madi, sorry for asking but… do you have any idea where your brother's house is? Or are we just walking aimlessly?"

Madison looked hesitant to answer this question, but after a short pause and a long sigh, she did, "Well, you probably won't believe me when I tell you."

Evelyn stopped walking, causing Madison to jerk at her arm once again and abruptly stop skipping, "What do you mean?"

With a small smile, Madison rubbed her head, "Uhm, I can kind of, sort of… feel where my brother's house is. It has an aura of its own and my whole family can sense if it's near. It works better when I have you with me, though." She smiled weakly at Evelyn, hope filling her innocent eyes.

Evelyn's brow furrowed and her eyes squinted into little slivers. She was trying her hardest to figure this girl out. Was she telling the truth or was this whole thing just a game? And what did Evelyn have to do with the "sense"? Either way, she decided to go along, "Well, is it near? Can you feel it?"

Madison's little finger pointed over a large hill that Evelyn didn't notice before this point in time, "It should be just over this hill."

And with that, they attacked the hill at full force. Evelyn's already tired legs burned under the weight of the hill. Naturally, Evelyn made it to the top way before Madison. But she couldn't go anymore. Her legs stopped working. Not from fatigue, but shock. Her jaw dropped as her eyes set on the sight in front of her.


	2. Could You Show Me?

YAYY! People are reading! That's exciting. I absolutely love writing and it's great to hear that people like it. Please feel free to review. Give me your thoughts, I want to improve as much as possible!  
Thank you!!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any characters from Howl's Moving Castle.

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**COULD YOU SHOW ME?  
**

Just beyond the hill stood some sort of mechanical creature that seemed to be living and breathing. It's "tongue" stuck out of its large mouth. It had eyes like a chameleon that moved in every which direction. Many chimneys poked out of the top of this creature and they all billowed out black smoke. Many other unnecessary looking trinkets stuck out of its sides. A small house seemed to be growing on its side. It was made of both wood and metal and it had a creepy sort of look to it. With a huge yawn, the creature folded up its chicken-like legs and plopped on the flat ground, causing a small earthquake.

Evelyn's eyes seemed to bulge out of her head. She was sure they were going to pop if she looked any longer so she turned her attention to Madison, "Wha-what is that?!"

But Madison did not answer. All she did was smile the widest smile Evelyn has ever seen. Was this girl nuts?! This… creature stood before them and all she could do was smile.

"I knew it! I knew he was here! MARC!" Madison screamed at the top of her lungs as she sprinted towards the mechanical being. That monster's name was Marc? Was that creature her brother? Evelyn was so confused. All she could think to do was to catch up to Madison.

Evelyn effortlessly caught up to Madison, whose legs were half the size of hers. "Madison!" She shouted next to her, but it seemed that Madison wasn't paying attention. Tears were streaming across her cheeks and into her cotton candy hair as she ran faster and faster towards the creature. Evelyn looked at the machine again. Its mouth was opened wide and its tongue was making a ramp into it.

When they both reached the tip of the tongue, Madison crawled up it while Evelyn stopped dead in her tracks. Inside the tongue, where the taste buds would be if it were real, stood a tall man. His arms were outstretched and soon filled by Madison's embrace. While hugging Madison, the man looked directly at Evelyn, looking rather confused and a bit protective.

After pulling away from her extremely long hug, the man knelt down on one knee and spoke to Madison. She nodded furiously and pointed towards Evelyn, but didn't look at her. But the man was. If he were to look any harder, Evelyn's image would burn into his retinas. He looked at Madison, then at Evelyn again but this time he gave her a hand gesture. No, not that kind. He was gesturing her to come up.

With great strain, Evelyn made it up the creature's metal tongue. Madison and the tall man stood there waiting for her, looking rather amused. Evelyn's face flushed from exasperation and embarrassment. Then Madison spoke, "Evelyn, this is my brother, Marc." She was hugging his waist so tightly Evelyn was expecting his face to be blue.

But it wasn't. The only part of his face that was blue was his magnificent dark blue, almond shaped eyes. He had high, but not too high, cheek bones. His white-blond hair was slicked back but didn't look like it held any gel at all. His height from a distance did not do him justice. He towered over Madison and Evelyn was sure that he was at least a head taller than her. He was wearing a heavy looking dark blue jacket; its shiny, large, fancy looking buttons were undone and showed a pale yellow button down shirt that was tucked into his matching dark blue suit pants. He was possibly the most beautiful man Evelyn has ever seen. His smile was bright and welcoming and his arm was outstretched, "Marcel L'Amour." Even his name was beautiful, the kind that just rolls off your tongue, "My sister here tells me you helped her find my house. You have my sincere thanks." His voice was smooth, like a jazz singer's.

Evelyn reached out her hand to shake his, but he took her hand gently and brought it up to his lips, kissing the back of it softly. She blushed again, taking her hand back quickly to save herself from any further embarrassment.

Awkward silence.

"Are you going to tell me your name?" Marcel's silky voice filled Evelyn's ears and made her jump.

"Uh, yeah, sorry." She shook her head and smacked her palm to her forehead, "It's Evelyn. Evelyn Asher."

He smiled at her, "What a lovely name. Welcome to my home, Evelyn Asher. Would you like to come in?" He asked.

Evelyn blinked a few times, quite shocked that a man this handsome would invite a girl like her into his house. Wait… house?! This… thing was a house?! She questioned this whole situations actuality again, but didn't want to pass up such an offer. "Yeah, sure. That would be nice."

He smiled again and turned on his heel, walking into the darkness of the creature's throat. Madison followed. But Evelyn was doubtful. As if Marcel and Madison were to turn around any moment and scream "SYKE!" at her and throw her out. But, alas, there was no screaming and, thankfully, no throwing out. So she walked into the darkness.

Marcel stood at a large wooden door, waiting for Evelyn to emerge. When she was within eyeshot, he opened the door, letting his little sister in. He continued holding the door open as Evelyn walked in; she gave him a quick nod as she did.

As soon as her eyes adjusted to the light, her jaw dropped. The inside of the house was almost as crazy as the outside! Dishes were piled everywhere along with food, clothes and other objects that couldn't be named. The floor was gritty, as if a pound of dirt was spread across it. She looked down; her once black, not-so-shiny shoes were now light brown just from stepping into this room. She would have never guessed that an attractive man such as Marcel would live in this condition.

Madison looked just as repulsed as Evelyn did, "Marc, how do you live in this dump?!" She picked up a stray sock and held it as far away from her face as possible, "Our parent's house is so clean! I don't know who…" Her words trailed off and she dropped the sock on the floor. Her face turned a bright shade of red as her eyes welled up with tears. But before Evelyn could even figure out what was going on, Marcel was right by her side, comforting his little sister.

Madison was bawling now, her hands covered her face and she was crouched down on the dirty floor, "They kicked me out, Marc. They finally figured out. I was trying to hide it for so long." Her muffled voice cracked with sorrow. Evelyn couldn't bear to stand there and just watch her cry, so she knelt down in front of her. Marcel was looking at her with great care. Evelyn could tell that he loved his little sister. But she also wondered what could force parents to kick their young daughter out of the house and onto the streets?

"I know, Madi. I know. I should have taken you when I had the chance. I'm so sorry." Marcel's words were soft and genuine. He hugged her tightly and kissed the top of her fluffy hair. He then swept her off the floor and into his arms, looking at Evelyn as he did, "I'll be right back, I'm just going to put her in my room." He smiled at her, "Stay put, okay?" Evelyn nodded and Marcel disappeared up the stairs.

Now Evelyn really had time to study the messiness of this room. As she was looking around she wondered if the rest of the house was like this. Probably. She tried to picture the room without the mess. There seems to be a dining table under that pile of junk and counters under that massive pile of books.

Books?!

Evelyn's face brightened up at this sight. She nearly sprinted over to the counter and immediately began rummaging through the gigantic pile.

"Spells: Volume 1-589."

"Recipes for a Wizard."

"How to Reverse Gone-Wrong Spells and Other Magical Mishaps."

Evelyn nearly choked on air when she realized what these books were for. Was this man a wizard or is he just really interested in magic?

Seeing these books reminded her of that night at her house with Lita-

"So I see you've found my books." Marcel's smooth, low voice filled the room and interrupted her thoughts. She turned around and he was standing right behind her. How long was he there!? He chuckled, seemingly reading her thoughts as she freaked out in her head, "I don't mind. Do you like reading?"

Evelyn was relieved that he wasn't furious. She smiled, "Oh yes sir, I love reading."

Marcel held up a hand, palm facing her, "Please, don't call me sir. It makes me feel old. And by the looks of it, we're not too far apart in age. How old are you, eighteen?"

Evelyn nodded, "Exactly." She gave him a long, hard gaze, "And you must be… twenty…" she paused, not really sure how old he is. She didn't want to hurt his feelings so she went with the median, "five?"

Marcel smiled, but shook his head, "Close, but no cigar. Twenty-three." He said with great pride.

Evelyn held back a laugh, "Well if you keep on saying," she held up two fingers with each hand over her head, making quotation marks, "'close, but no cigar' people are going to think you're at least sixty." A coy smile was planted on her face.

Marcel's jaw dropped, "Really? Do I look sixty?!" He placed his hands on his hips and put his nose in the air.

Evelyn tried to hold it back again, but it was no use. She giggled wildly and nodded at him, "Yeah kind of." Then she turned back to the books, still chuckling, and picked up one named "How to Tame Magical Creatures."

Marcel showed up at her side and looked over her shoulder, "So, you like books." He paused, "What about magic?"

Evelyn cleared her throat, sort of shocked at the question, "Well, I've dabbled in it. But nothing more." She lied, waving a nonchalant hand in the air.

"And the result?" Boy, he didn't waste any time.

"Well…" she began. "Give me your hand." He did as he was told and she grabbed it with her own.

"You have really warm hands." He paused, "Is that what happened?"

She shrugged, "Some of it. I used to have really cold hands. But that's not the point! Make me excited."

He blinked, "Uhh." He cheeks turned a light shade of pink.

She thought about it, not really getting what he was saying. When it clicked, she rolled her eyes, "Oh God, no. Not like that. Never mind, make me angry."

"They're tearing down the library." He said to her, using the little bit of information he knew, hoping that would be enough. Dry heat began radiating between their hands. He was about to pull away, but Evelyn squeezed his hand.

"Hold on. You feel that?" He nodded as a response. "Say something else. There's more."

He hesitated, reluctant to burn his hand off. But he was curious to see what would happen so he continued, "And they're replacing it with… an arcade." And as soon as the last word left his lips, he could feel sparks between their palms. They burned into his skin and he pulled away. And he did just in time, because now there was a massive display of sparks coming from both hands. All he could do was stand there and stare at them.

After the sparks died down, Marcel spoke, "You're telling me that you did that by yourself?"

"Well, me and a friend. We had a spell book and we were chanting a fire conjuring spell. I'm pretty sure nothing happened to her, but this is what happened to me." Evelyn held out her hands which now had black ashes all over them.

Marcel reached out and grabbed her hand, rubbing it with his own to get the ashes off, "I'm sorry. That really sucks."

Evelyn nodded, she could feel her cheeks getting warm, "And how are you connected to magic?" She asked as she watched him rub off the black residue.

He looked up from his work and stared into her eyes. He could now see that his eyes were not only blue, but they also had green in them. They looked like little globes. "Well, I'm a wizard." He shrugged and dropped his eyes to her hands, "I'm actually surprised that you don't know who I am."

Evelyn's face scrunched up, "Well, I'm kind of sheltered." Which is one-hundred percent true. Both of her parents are aspiring authors and they don't allow television or radio in their house. They say it messes with their own "vibes".

Marcel chuckled, "So that's why you love reading so much. Because there's nothing else for you to do in your house."

Evelyn blushed for the millionth time today and nodded, "Yeah." There was a slight pause in which Marcel continued rubbing her hands. Evelyn then spoke up, "Hey."

Marcel looked up again; confusion filled his expression, "Hmm?"

Evelyn tilted her head, "Could you show me?"


	3. The Stealer of Hearts

Hi! Sorry this one is late. I kind of forgot about it, ahaha. Maybe if I got some reviews I would remember more often. -winkwink nudgenudge-  
This one is also kind of short. Sorry about that, but I promisee the next one will be longer.  
Thanks for reading!!

DISCLAIMER: I do not own any characters from Howl's Moving Castle. (You'll actually see some this time.)

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**THE STEALER OF HEARTS**

Marcel's eyes grew with confusion, "Show you what?" He asked.

Evelyn rolled her eyes as if that was the dumbest question known to man, "Magic, a spell, anything!" She flipped her ashy hands around so now it was her who was holding his hands, "I've always been so curious about magic. That's why this happened." She lifted her hand into his sight and wiggled her fingers, "I only did it because I was so excited."

Marcel cocked his head to one side, "Why are you so curious? It's nothing special."

Evelyn's jaw dropped, "Nothing special?! Do you understand what you're saying?!" She let go of his hand to pace around the room, her arms flailing above her head, "The ability to conjure and create anything you please is _nothing special_?! I would absolutely _die_ to have that kind of power!" She was practically screaming.

With a long stride, Marcel stood in front of her, grabbing her by her right shoulder. "Shh." He placed a finger on his lips to show emphasis, "Madi is sleeping, remember?"

With this statement, Evelyn just nodded. Her voice was now in a low whisper, "Could you just show me something small? It would seriously make my life." She pouted her bottom lip.

Marcel gave a long, exasperated sigh before saying, "Give me your hands again." Evelyn did as she was told and Marcel placed his hands under hers. He closed his eyes and muttered a few inaudible worlds. Wind began flowing under their feet as if it were coming in through the filthy wood floors. Papers, dust and other small objects began flowing around them. Evelyn was amazed. Amazed that wind came out of nowhere. Amazed at the iciness of his touch. But mostly, amazed at his concentration. His eyes were closed and his brow was strained. He obviously knew what he was doing. She looked down at her hands and was immediately lost for words. The ash stains that would never come off, even after Marcel's intense rubbing, were just floating off her hands, like dead leaves falling off an autumn tree. After a few seconds, her hands were completely rid of residue. Marcel pulled his icy hands away to place them over his mouth and blow warm air into them.

Evelyn didn't know what to say. All she could do was lift her clean hands in the air and stare at them.

Finally, words came to her, "That was… amazing!" A bright smile was painted on her flushed face.

Marcel continued blowing warm air into his cupped hands, just nodding at her reaction.

She walked up to him and grabbed his hands, "Wow! They're freezing! I thought it was just part of the magic." She placed them between her hands and rubbed, knowing that would warm them up quickly. "Why does that happen?"

He looked hesitant to answer, "You'd never believe me."

Evelyn continued rubbing. She could feel his hands getting warmer, "Yes I would. Why would you lie to me?"

Marcel shook his head, "I wouldn't. It's just… it's hard for me to even believe."

Evelyn looked up from his hands and into his eyes. She was scared to know. But it looked like he was really suffering, "You can tell me. Maybe I can help you."

He just looked down, "No. No one can help me. It's something _I_ must do."

Evelyn stopped the rubbing. She was disappointed. She really felt like she could help him, "Please? I won't judge you or anything."

Marcel sighed and walked over to the dining table. He cleared off the junk on the seat, just pushing it to the floor, and sat down. Evelyn grabbed the things on her seat and neatly placed them on the table. Marcel, finally, spoke up, "It happened about a year ago…"

-FLASHBACK-

Marcel and his master, Howl Jenkins, were walking around the market, getting Sophie (Howl's wife) ingredients for dinner. Marcel then caught the eye of a beautiful girl with pin-straight black hair. Being the flirt that he is, Marcel quickly joined her side, pretending to look for the perfect potato.

Marcel spoke up, turning towards the beautiful girl, "Hey. My name's Marcel." He turned to Howl, "And this is my master, Howl." He winked at her and gave her a coy smile, "I'm a wizard." It was his number one pick-up line and it always worked.

The girl winked back, "I know who you are." She turned around and yelled, "Master!" And after a few moments, a repulsive woman appeared. She was old, extremely fat, and seemed to slither her way over.

Howl gasped, "Marc! Get the hell out of there!"

The old woman cackled, "Ah, Howl. I'm glad you recognize me."

And then, Marcel knew who that woman was. It was the Wicked Witch of the Waste, the witch who stole Howl's heart years ago. And this young lady must be her apprentice. Who would have thought?

"Get his heart, Atil! I want his heart! It belongs to me!" the Wicked Witch of the Waste screamed at her apprentice, whose name seemed to be Atil.

Marcel jumped in front of Howl, protecting his master from any harm, "Master, leave. I can take care of this!"

Howl grabbed his shoulder and pushed him aside, "No, Marc! My heart is safe with Sophie! Go!"

Marcel looked his master straight in the eyes, "You've taught me well, Howl. Now I must show you that."

Howl then stepped aside, bowing his head, and Marcel glared at Atil, ready to counter-attack.

And when Atil shot an arrow conjuring spell at him, the battle began.

And it was over as quickly as it began.

The battle was not hard for Marcel, Howl had really taught him well. Atil laid face down on the dirt ground, not moving an inch.

But when Marcel turned his back for one second, Atil shot a body paralyzing spell at him and he fell to the ground, unable to move. Before Howl could even know what was happening, Atil jumped on top of Marcel screaming madly, "I must have your heart! Give me your heart!" She put great pressure on his chest with her right hand and muttered a few words. When she relieved the pressure off of his chest, she pulled out his heart.

Howl, at this point, was trying to get Atil off of Marcel, but he knew it was too late. Atil looked at Howl with an evil grin as she held Marcel's heart high above her head. And like that, both Atil and the Wicked Witch of the Waste were gone, leaving Marcel limp in Howl's arms.

-END FLASHBACK-

Evelyn's mouth hung wide open, just as it was the whole time the story was being told.

Marcel blinked at her, tilting his head again, "You don't believe me?"

She shook her head wildly, "Oh, no! I do! Promise!" She was yelling again and Marcel shushed her. "Sorry." She apologized. "It's just… how are you alive?"

Marcel just shrugged, "You know what? I don't even know. I guess it's something about wizards. They can live without a heart. Howl went through the same thing."

Evelyn looked confused, "And who is this Howl?"

Marcel looked at her with wide eyes, "You don't know who Howl is?"

Evelyn shook her head.

"How about Wizard Pendragon?"

"Nope."

"Sorcerer Jenkins?"

"Can't say I've ever heard of him."

Marcel's hands flew up in the air in frustration, "You're hopeless!"

Evelyn looked up at the stairs where Madison was quietly sleeping, "Shh!" She shushed him. "I told you! I'm sheltered!" She yelled in a hushed voice.

Marcel sighed, "Yeah, yeah, I know. Sorry."

Evelyn shrugged, "Eh, it's okay. I'm over it."

Marcel chucked at her easy-going attitude.

"So your hands get cold when you do magic because you have no heart?" Evelyn questioned.

Marcel nodded, "Exactly."

Nothing else was said. An awkward silence fell over them.

Evelyn stretched, getting out of her seat, "Welp! I guess I better get going. Your sister interrupted my job search." She lied.

Marcel raised his blond eyebrows, "You're looking for a job?"

"WORK HERE!" A high-pitched voice yelled from the top of the stairs.

Madison ran down the stairs, skipping the last five steps and leaping to the bottom. She sprinted over to Evelyn and hugged her waist tightly, "Please, oh please?!" She pleaded. "You can clean! PLEASE?!"

"Uhm," Evelyn shifted awkwardly, "it's up to your brother. It's his house."

Madison and Evelyn both looked to Marcel, whose eyes were wide, eyebrows raised. "Uhm." He started.

Madison released Evelyn to jump on Marcel's lap, "Please big brother? I really like her! I think you do too!"

Marcel choked, "What?!" He lifted Madison up off his lap and placed her on the floor, he stood up, "How long have you been listening to our conversation?"

Madison looked at her feet, which she was shuffling, "Well…" she began, "Let's just say I never went to bed." She looked up at her big brother and gave him a wide grin.

Marcel put his hands on his hips, "Oh, you're going to get it!" He began stalking towards her.

"NO!" She screamed. "STOP STALLING AND ANSWER THE QUESTION!"

Marcel froze, obviously scared by his little sisters outburst.

"Yeah, Marc," Evelyn beamed at him, "answer the question."

Marcel looked at Evelyn who looked back at him with hopeful eyes. "Uhm…"


	4. The Bobbing Lock

Welcome to chapter four of For My Lover!! Yayy! If you didn't know already, I uploaded the first three chapters to FF before, but then I kind of forgot about it and didn't add any more. So I deleted them off of FF, revised them and reposted them on FF. But this chapter is BRAND NEW, never before seen on FF. So enjoy. Reviews would be lovely.  
DISCLAIMER: I do not own any characters from Howl's Moving Castle, though I do own everyone/everything else.  
Love ya!

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**THE BOBBING LOCK**

"Please, please, pleaseee." Madison pleaded, clutching her small hands together and shaking them fanatically.

Marcel looked from Madison, to Evelyn, back to Madison, then to the floor. His eyes then scanned the chaotic room, studying every misplaced plate, every dust ball. His cold, dark blue eyes then returned to Evelyn, who was looking back intently. "Are you good at cleaning?"

Evelyn nodded her head a few times, "Oh, yes. Very good. Other than reading, that's what I do at my house. Clean, clean, clean!" The smile on her face grew wide with anticipation. She had no idea what Marcel was going to say.

All he did was tap his chin with his right index finger. Tap his chin and pace, pace and tap his chin. Madison was getting restless and Evelyn thought this was funny. She was amused with the fact that little Madison took quite a liking to her, and so quickly! They had not met more than two hours ago! But the funniest thing about this whole situation was that Evelyn felt the same way. She felt drawn towards Madison and her beautiful brother, Marcel L'Amour. She has never warmed up to someone as quickly as she has with this family. They both seemed so genuine, so pleasant, and to a complete stranger! If she were offered this job, she would most certainly take it. Not for the money, but for the people it included.

"Hmm." That was the first sound that emitted from Marc after nine very slow laps around the room. He stopped near the door where they entered the house; the one that lead out to the back of the creatures tongue. Madison stood there, body quaking slightly, watching him attentively. Marcel's perfect pale lips curved up a bit at the corners. He was obviously also amused at his little sister. Evelyn wondered if he was drawing this out just to torture little Madison. To be honest, it was torturing her too.

"You know what?" Marcel's smooth jazz singer's voice rang sweetly in Evelyn's ears. "I will hire you." He nodded proudly. "Yes, I will. This place is a dump." He gestured around while speaking, pointing out the incredible mess.

"YAY!!" Madison squealed in a high pitched, shrilling voice. It made Evelyn's ears ring a bit, but she didn't really notice. She was too excited about her new job. Being around a handsome wizard and his energetic sister all day while doing something she's disgustingly good at? Best. Job. Ever.

"I do have some money saved up, so your pay will be decent." Marcel noted, trying to be all business-like.

But Evelyn shook her head wildly at this comment, "Oh, don't worry! Please don't worry! Money isn't a problem. Anything will be just fine."

Marc looked confused, "But, isn't that the reason why you want a job in the first place?" His cold blue eyes were placed firmly on her grey ones.

"Well... yes you're right. But I don't want to be rude. I mean, cleaning comes easy for me. It feels weird taking your money for something I enjoy." Evelyn explained, trying to make him understand her point of view.

Marcel just smiled and shook his head, "Oh, no. Trust me; you're not being rude at all. I want to pay you well. Don't worry about it." And with that, he swiped a nonchalant hand at her, like there was no other answer.

A shrug is the only thing Evelyn could think to do. Sure, she wanted the money; she actually needed the money. But it felt so odd to take money from such a beautiful person. Evelyn felt like she should be paying him just to be in his presence!

"Then it's settled. You shall start work tomorrow." He said, pointing a finger to the ceiling. But his proud face then turned unsure, "That is, unless you have school…"

Evelyn flashed a wide smile, being reminded of her freedom, "Nope. Actually, today was my last day of high school. All I have to do is go to graduation in a week."

Marcel looked truly excited for her as his eyes widened and the same wide smile grew on his face, "Well, congratulations! Are you planning on going to college?"

Evelyn nodded her head, "Mhm."

An awkward silence fell over them. Marcel cleared his throat, obviously noticing this silence, "Well…" he began, "Where are you attending college?"

Evelyn rubbed the back of her head, "Eh heh, I was kind of hoping you weren't going to ask…" her words trailed off. Her cheeks turned a slight shade of pink and she shuffled her used-to-be-black-now-brown shoes.

Marcel's brows furrowed, confused by this remark. He looked at her intensely, "Why? Did you not get accepted to anywhere? I won't judge you, I promise." His lips turned into that smile that made it hard for Evelyn to concentrate.

And it showed as she stumbled for words, "Uhm," she cleared her throat, "N-no that's not it. I was actually accepted to… every college I applied to."

Those dark blue eyes widened as Marcel listened. He clapped his hands together once, "That's great! Where did you apply?" He actually seemed interested, he wasn't just making conversation.

"Well, you know…" Evelyn trailed off again. But when she looked at Marcel's eager face, she decided to spit it out, "Yale, Princeton, Cornell, Brown, Harvard, Penn State, Columbia, Dartmouth… the usual…" She gave Marcel a weak smile as his jaw dropped.

"Wait, wait. You're telling me you were accepted to ALL of the eight Ivy League schools?!" He looked to Madison, who looked like she had no idea what he was talking about, so he looked back at Evelyn. He was nearly screaming, "How!?"

Madison covered her ears and Evelyn shushed him, "There's no need to shout." She waved a finger at him and he covered his mouth, still in shock. And Evelyn shrugged, not in a cocky way… but in a way that showed she truly didn't know. Her parents made her apply to every Ivy League college and (not to her parent's surprise) she was accepted to every single one of them. Heck, some of them were even begging her to attend!

Marc seemed to compose himself, looking more collected now, "And which one are you attending?"

Evelyn shrugged again, "Yale, I guess. That's what my mother told me. They were the one that gave us the most money to my fam-"

"Hold on," Marc interrupted her, "not only did you get accepted to each and every Ivy League school, but they are giving you money to go?"

Evelyn let out a weak giggle, "Yeah, I suppose you're right."

Marcel just smiled and shook his head, "How did you get so smart?"

"I told you," Evelyn pointed out, "sheltered." She tapped a finger to her temple and they both laughed.

When their laughing finished, Marcel let out a long sigh, "Well, it's official. I am thoroughly jealous of you."

Evelyn scoffed, "Jealous? Of me? A wizard is jealous of ordinary, boring me?" She chuckled and pointed to him, "Now that is funny."

He just shrugged, "Well to be honest, I don't think you're ordinary or boring." Then he smiled at her, "And I'm jealous because I never got the chance to higher my education. It was always something I wanted to do… but I got pulled into this." He gestured around the room, pointing to his books, then himself. Evelyn returned to the chair she sat in before and Marc followed her example, but slouched in his chair as she sat proper in hers. Madison skipped quietly up the stairs and into Marc's room. He continued, "I was pulled out of everything, my studies, my music, my art. Just to pursue this life." He leaned into Evelyn, his sapphire eyes serious, "The life that has cursed me to live without a heart." He paused, "I used to be such a loving person," he returned to his slouching position, "now it's hard for me to just make friends."

Evelyn reminded herself of her previous thought, "I beg to differ. If you don't mind, that is."

Marc continued slouching as he looked at her with a furrowed brow, "What do you mean?"

"Well," Evelyn began as she gestured to him, then herself, "this… right now. What is this?" She could feel her cheeks flush. She wished she hadn't said these words as soon as they left her lips. He probably didn't feel the same way she did. She felt like a fool.

To Evelyn's dismay, he just shrugged. There was a slight silence before he perked up, "Actually, you're right. It is unusual how I feel. I haven't been this open to anyone in a long time." This pleased Evelyn deeply, and a wide smile grew on her face. Marc noticed this, he chuckled. Her innocence felt refreshing, like opening a window in his stale-aired mind. The breeze felt nice.

For the next hour or so, Marc and Evelyn just sat there, chatting away like friends. They talked about things that regular new friends would talk about. Favorite movies, books (Evelyn had a very long list of those), and family.

"So you're telling me you haven't seen your family in eight years?" Evelyn found this hard to believe, her amazed expression showed this.

Marcel gave her a small nod, "Yes, when Howl came to my home and took me as his apprentice…" he paused to sigh, "that was the last time I saw them."

Evelyn was trying to make sense of this, "So this Howl guy," Marcel nodded, "just took you from your family? Did he not allow you to see them?"

Marcel looked at her with shock in his eyes, "Oh no. No, no, no!" He shook his head wildly and waved his hand at her, "It was nothing like that."

Evelyn's brow line creased, "Then… what was it?"

Marcel looked to the floor where his shiny black shoes scuffled in the dirt. Evelyn wondered why his shoes weren't brown like hers have become. His silky voice invaded her inner-questions, "My parents didn't want to see me. They thought it would interrupt my studies." His hand ran through his slicked back hair, messing it up a bit. A stray piece of hair stuck up from the back. It bobbed when he talked, "Howl wanted me to see them. He could tell what their absence did to me." He shrugged, the lock bobbed again. "But they wanted nothing to do with that..." His voice trailed off.

Evelyn fought the urge to lick her hand and smooth out the stray hairs, "I'm guessing today was the first time you saw your sister?"

Marc nodded and the strand of bleach blond hair followed, "Since she was four. It hurt me the most to leave her. She needed me then. She needs me now…" He looked behind him, up toward the stairs.

"I noticed she cries when she is reminded of her parents." Evelyn could see her tears, the way Marc was wrapped around her before Evelyn even knew what was happening, "Are they mean to her?"

Marcel looked back at Evelyn and sighed, a look of pain flashed on his face, "It's complicated. I'm not sure if Madison even wants me to tell you." His eyes, those azure eyes, made it hard for Evelyn to think. And that strand of hair didn't help either.

Evelyn noticed a clock hanging on the wall. It was covered in cobwebs and was difficult to read, but she was pretty sure it was late. She stood up and stretched out. Sitting in the same chair for a long time reminded her achy back of school, "I should get going. It's getting late."

Marcel stood up with her, "Sure, that's fine. I shouldn't have kept you for so long." He flashed a smile at Evelyn that made her consider staying. He rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment, "It's just so easy talking to you. It's very strange."

Evelyn chuckled, "Yeah, I know how you feel."

"So…" Marcel began awkwardly, "I'll see you tomorrow? Do you mind coming in the morning?"

"Hmm," Evelyn acted like she was thinking, "I'm going to have to check my _busy_ schedule." She smiled at him and rolled her eyes.

Marcel played along, "Yes, please, don't let me interfere with your other appointments."

The both laughed. Evelyn shoved him playfully but he didn't move an inch. This made them laugh harder.

"Well," Evelyn started, the humor still filling her voice, "I guess I'll see you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow it is." Marcel nodded and that stray strand of hair swayed.

The torment finally got to Evelyn, so she reached behind Marc's head to fix the annoying lock of hair that has been bothering her.

But before she could fix the irritating strand, strong arms wrapped around her waist. Evelyn stiffened up; she was caught off guard. She sucked in a cold breath.

Marc realized what was happening and awkwardly dropped his arms. He looked down at her in shock and she returned the same gaze. He staggered for words, "I, um…" He cleared his throat, trying to compose himself, "I thought…"

Evelyn blushed deeply and reached behind his head again (quickly this time) and flattened down the piece of hair.

Marcel let out a forced laugh, "Sorry." His usual confident smile was weak and unsure.

"Yeah, me too." She was lucky he didn't catch the double meaning as she turned for the door, "Bye then."

Marc was at the door before Evelyn was even done turning around. He held it open kindly and gave her a nod, "Goodbye, Evelyn."

Evelyn stopped in her tracks. She didn't know why. It might have been because her name sounded so beautiful coming off his lips. Or the way it made her heart flutter. Or maybe because it was pitch black outside.

"Aw, crap." Evelyn knew it was late, but she didn't expect it to be this dark!

Marcel looked out the door and frowned at the night, "Are you able to make it home in this darkness? Do you want me to walk you home?"

Walk her home? After the most uncomfortable moment of her life? No thank you! "No thank you." She said sweetly, "Madison is here and I don't want you to leave her. I'll be fine." Even though she was afraid of the dark, she didn't want any more awkward episodes with Marc.

"Hang on, let me get you a light." He said as he bolted up the stairs in three strides. Evelyn heard loud bangs and crashes, then Madison yelling at Marc to be quiet. Evelyn giggled as Marc quietly apologized to her sleeping sister.

He returned with a large flashlight in hand. He beamed at her as he placed it in her waiting hands.

Evelyn opened the door and turned on the flashlight. It made the night look like day, "Thank you. This is perfect." She gave him a smile as she headed out the door.

Evelyn stood at the top of the creature's metal tongue, looking down. It looked pretty steep, but she could handle it. She began climbing down very carefully. But when Marc's voice filled the air, yelling at her to be cautious, Evelyn lost her train of thought and her footing.

The last thing she head was Marc's beautiful, strained voice screaming her name.


End file.
